Copper Sulfate for chickens?

[LittleBoPeep1]

My flock has had canker for a little while now and I cannot seem to get rid of it. I was thinking of adding copper sulfate to their water (1g per 2 1/2 liters of water in a plastic container). But, after researching a little more and finding this.... I got a little scared.

"Laying hens were fed copper sulfate at concentrations of 78 ppm Cu and 1437 ppm Cu for 2 weeks. At the highest concentration, hens produced fewer eggs, consumed less feed, and developed ulcers in the gizzard and oral cavity. Other studies of chickens that were fed copper sulfate reported oral lesions proportional to the dose of copper, and conflicting effects on feeding rate and weight gain"

The copper sulfate I have is not acidified copper sulfate. Is that okay? Does anybody have experience or advice for using copper sulfate?
Thanks

 

[Eggcessive]

I would check with Jefferspet.com online. They sell acidified copper sulfate for a few dollars. The dosage is only 1/4 tsp. per gallon of water, and it is given for 3 days once a month to help prevent the spread of the disease. It really is not a good treatment for canker, only a preventative, and used more than that is dangerous. For a canker outbreak you will need to use drugs such as metronidazole (Flagyl, FishZole) which are available online in fish stores. Dosage is 125mg twice a day for 5 days. To be honest, though, having a whole flock with canker, many people would cull those birds. I would check with a vet, and make sure that is what they have. Sometimes it is difficult to tell canker lesions from wet fowl pox or some respiratory diseases that cause yellow exudate inside the beak and throat. Can you post any pictures of the lesions? One thing you can do is to disinfect your waterers and feeders, and make sure the drinking water is fresh daily to help prevent it. Since I don't have any experience with canker, I'm sure that you could get more info by doing a search at the top of this page.

I just went back to read your previous posts about canker, and that you have treated one before with FishZole. You might need to check with a vet for a combination drug or for advice on treatment.

 

[LittleBoPeep1]

Thank you so much for your reply. Unfortunately, all my chickens are like my pets so I really will try everything to help them. I also have two separate coops that I am afraid will be affected (not yet I think). Could I try to put fish zole in the flock's waterer instead of individually dosing them?

 

[Eggcessive]

Most people would give it directly to each chicken to be sure of the proper dose. I have never used fish zole, so I'm not sure that it is water soluble, and not going to settle out in water. Maybe others who have treated rhis in their flocks will chime in, but with having other unaffected chickens in separate coops, I probably wouldn't risk them getting sick too. I hope you can figure out how to deal with this, and good luck.

 

[Cooley gypsum]

Thank you so much for your reply. Unfortunately, all my chickens are like my pets so I really will try everything to help them. I also have two separate coops that I am afraid will be affected (not yet I think). Could I try to put fish zole in the flock's waterer instead of individually dosing them?

Hi! After a lot of trial and error I think I'm having a canker issue at my house too... What did you decide to do and is it working? I just decided today to start on copper sulfate after reading it in a book and avian dr site. Just found this post was recent and thought I'd follow up with you... Let me know! Anne

 

[LittleBoPeep1]

Sorry to hear that you are dealing with this issue too...it's very pesky. I never ended up using copper sulfate as I was hesitant to use something that sounded so much like a chemical to me and I heard it was hard on the chickens (but I don't know that for sure). Instead, I ended up using fish zole tablets dissolved in water and used a syringe to give it to each chicken twice a day to ensure correct dosage (that was a lot of work, so maybe you could just put it in the flock's water). I did this for about nine days. That seemed to clear up most of it and as they eventually got healthier and healthier. I also used some Oxytetracycline. I don't know if what I did was what was best, but it seemed to at least help. My flock seems completely healthy now I hope your flock gets better!

I had one hen in the beginning that was too sick to even to eat enough on her own
Here was my treatment process for her:

• I treated her with Oxytetracyline for a week (I purchased this from my local farm store). I put this in her water once a day
• I gave her vitamins and electrolytes in her water
• I also treated her with Fish Zole for six days (I had to purchase this on line). I dissolved one pill in a tiny bit of water and mixed a little food in with it to create a mash. I gave this to her once a day.
• I then treated her with the rest of the flock once she got better

*I also gave her meal worms sprinkled in her water once a day to encourage her to drink and to give her extra protein

 

[Cooley gypsum]

Sorry to hear that you are dealing with this issue too...it's very pesky. I never ended up using copper sulfate as I was hesitant to use something that sounded so much like a chemical to me and I heard it was hard on the chickens (but I don't know that for sure). Instead, I ended up using fish zole tablets dissolved in water and used a syringe to give it to each chicken twice a day to ensure correct dosage (that was a lot of work, so maybe you could just put it in the flock's water). I did this for about nine days. That seemed to clear up most of it and as they eventually got healthier and healthier. I also used some Oxytetracycline. I don't know if what I did was what was best, but it seemed to at least help. My flock seems completely healthy now I hope your flock gets better!

I had one hen in the beginning that was too sick to even to eat enough on her own
Here was my treatment process for her:

• I treated her with Oxytetracyline for a week (I purchased this from my local farm store). I put this in her water once a day
• I gave her vitamins and electrolytes in her water
• I also treated her with Fish Zole for six days (I had to purchase this on line). I dissolved one pill in a tiny bit of water and mixed a little food in with it to create a mash. I gave this to her once a day.
• I then treated her with the rest of the flock once she got better

*I also gave her meal worms sprinkled in her water once a day to encourage her to drink and to give her extra protein

Thank you so much for letting me know! I did buy some fish zole in case I need to go there. She’s not doing well at all. But I also have to say I don’t see any cankers in her mouth, so it’s a bit confusing... we live on the river and there are a lot of wild birds. I removed our feeders today and vacuumed up all the stupid seeds! I can’t imagibe she’s going to make it, she really not well. Today is day two for the Cooper sulfate and she was no better, but I am in it to win it now...thanks for all the info. I’m gong to save it for future reference. She is still eating and drinking, but has diarrhea and her crop isn’t functioning well. Thank you!

 

[AmyMil]

Thank you so much for letting me know! I did buy some fish zole in case I need to go there. She’s not doing well at all. But I also have to say I don’t see any cankers in her mouth, so it’s a bit confusing... we live on the river and there are a lot of wild birds. I removed our feeders today and vacuumed up all the stupid seeds! I can’t imagibe she’s going to make it, she really not well. Today is day two for the Cooper sulfate and she was no better, but I am in it to win it now...thanks for all the info. I’m gong to save it for future reference. She is still eating and drinking, but has diarrhea and her crop isn’t functioning well. Thank you!

I know this is an old post, but whatever happened with your chicken? I have one with these exact symptoms. She seems to be getting better, but not sure what is wrong with her.